FRANK N. RITTER, MD, ANN ARBOR, MICHA shell exploded near a 29-year-old man, on duty in the armed forces and caused immediate ringing and partial loss of hearing in his right ear. Following this accident, the ear began to discharge a yellowish exudate and continued to do so throughout the rest of his life. A physician was never consulted regarding the deafness or the discharge, so further historical details are not available.At the age of 50, he was admitted to the hospital as an emergency patient because of the spontaneous rupture of an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Only a cursory examination of the right ear was done, and a perforated tympanic membrane was noted. The patient could hear only a moderate whisper in this ear. Surgical repair of the aneurysm was unsuccessful, and the patient died two days after admission. The temporal bones were removed